For a while now, it has been openly shared that there have been plans to look into bringing the IndyCar series back to Australia with latest news now confirming that the South Australian Motorsport Board are open to the idea.

Back last year, Penske Entertainment CEO Mark Miles explained that the series is looking to potentially host numerous non-championship rounds outside the US which would take place after the regular season had concluded.

With IndyCar’s history with Australia having raced on the Surfers Paradise street circuit – which the Supercars Championship currently use for their Gold Coast event – Australia is definitely on the cards.

Recently, the SAMB have openly expressed the idea of bringing more categories to the state after the successful turn out of the Speedway and Supercross during last year’s Adelaide 500.

“We look at all sorts of things in terms of motorsport options,” explained SAMB chief executive Mark Warren.

“The whole reason we went down the Speedway and also Supercross paths is to look at different types of motorsports we can bring to South Australia.”

“IndyCar is a really interesting one in that it’s obviously got a history in Australia, having been up on the Gold Coast previously. So if that was an opportunity for Adelaide to look at doing something with IndyCar, we’d definitely look at it.”

Since 2022, Adelaide hosts the season finale of the Supercars Championship and is set to continue to do so. If IndyCar do race in Adelaide, Warren has explained that rather than racing alongside the Supercars, the categories would race back to back; which would give Supercars it’s own space for their Grand Final.

“We’d need to work out how that fits with Supercars,”

“They’ve worked together before on the Gold Coast, but I think it would be looking at how you couple that together, because you’ve now got the Supercars Grand Final.”

“I’m not sure that you could do the two events together. So it would be working out, having built this street circuit, how we could possibly use that over a couple of weekends.”

The Supercars Championship is set to return for a brand new season with action kicking off in Sydney at the end of February with IndyCar returning on the same weekend.

Mark Miles, the CEO of Penske Entertainment, has hinted at exciting possibilities for IndyCar’s future with international expansion on the horizon. He recently revealed discussions with Supercars about potentially featuring the Adelaide 500, a popular Australian street circuit, as part of an international race series for IndyCar.

The idea of a non-championship international series is part of a broader strategy to fill the six-month gap between IndyCar’s September season finale and the start of the next season in March. While the prospect of IndyCar racing in Australia is intriguing, Miles has emphasized that there are no immediate plans to introduce in-season races outside North America. Instead, the focus is on exploring international opportunities in the offseason, aiming for a series of non-points-paying races.

Miles highlighted the logistical and financial challenges of organizing such events, referencing the significant costs associated with international travel and track logistics. Despite these challenges, he is enthusiastic about the concept and sees potential benefits in growing IndyCar’s global presence.

For now, the priority remains on maintaining a strong North American calendar while exploring ways to integrate international events that could enhance the series’ global appeal.

While IndyCar’s last visit to Australia was in 2008, the series is keen to explore opportunities for growth. Any international races would need to be carefully planned to maximize impact both in the host country and in the U.S. broadcast market. The idea is to create high-profile events that resonate with local audiences and contribute to the series’ global appeal, while also ensuring that U.S. fans have access to these races through suitable broadcasting arrangements.

“There’s lots of places that with the economics we probably could go race, but I don’t love the idea that we’d have a non-points race during the championship and take two or three weeks and create a hole.

“We don’t want to be popping around to wherever anyone throws us money. We want to have meaningful events that stand for something and can promote the brand.”

“This is primarily to drive international fandom,” said Miles.